1.Exploring Therapeutic Mechanism of Xihuang Wan for Hyperplasia of Mammary Glands Based on Network Pharmacology, Molecular Docking, and Cell Experiments
Junliang WANG ; Peihua LIANG ; Xueli MA ; Juanxia SUN ; Tao HAN ; Yongmei LAN
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2026;32(4):41-49
ObjectiveTo study the therapeutic mechanism of Xihuang Wan for hyperplasia of mammary glands based on network pharmacology, molecular docking, and cell experiments. MethodsThe active ingredients and targets of Xihuang Wan were retrieved from the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database and Analysis Platform (TCMSP) and A Bioinformatics Annotation daTabase for Molecular mechANism of Traditional Chinese Medicine (BATMAN-TCM) and supplemented by searching against PubChem and Swiss Target Prediction. The targets of differential metabolites in tissues and urine were obtained from previous metabolomics studies through PubChem and Swiss Target Prediction. GeneCards, Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM), PharmGKB, Therapeutic Target Database (TTD), Drunbank were searched for the targets of hyperplasia of mammary glands. After the common targets were obtained via Veeny2.1.0, the STRING database was used to analyze the protein-protein interactions, and Cytoscape was used for the core target analysis and visualization. Gene Ontology (GO) and the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) were employed for enrichment analysis. Molecular docking was carried out in Autodock, and cell experiments were conducted to verify the prediction results. In the cell experiments, estradiol and progesterone (E2+P) were used to intervene in human mammary epithelial/MCF-10A cells, and thus the MCF-10A cell proliferation model was established. The cells were then treated with Xihuang Wan-medicated serum. The cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) was used to measure the cell proliferation, and flow cytometry was used to detect apoptosis. The mRNA and protein levels of key factors in MCF-10A cells were determined by real-time PCR and Western blot, respectively. ResultsThe results of network pharmacology showed that 90 active ingredients and 316 common targets were obtained, from which 20 core targets and 38 corresponding active ingredients were screened out. The results of GO and KEGG enrichment analyses showed that Xihuang Wan exerted effect against hyperplasia of mammary glands by regulating a variety of biological processes, which may be related to protein kinase B (Akt)-related molecular functions, estrogen signaling pathway, prolactin signaling pathway and other biological processes. The results of molecular docking showed that estrogen receptor 1 (ESR1), serine/threonine kinase 1 (Akt1), non-receptor tyrosine kinase (SRC), and signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) all had strong binding activity with the nine active ingredients, suggesting that Xihuang Wan exert the effect through the ESR1/SRC/phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt signaling pathway and the Janus kinase (JAK)/STAT3 signaling pathway. The results of cell experiments showed that E2+P intervention in MCF-10A cells promoted the proliferation of MCF-10A cells (P<0.05), while the Xihuang Wan-medicated serum inhibited the proliferation of MCF-10A cells exposed to E2+P (P<0.05). Flow cytometry showed that the Xihuang Wan-medicated serum promoted the apoptosis of MCF-10A cells exposed to E2+P (P<0.01). The results of Real-time PCR showed that the Xihuang Wan-medicated serum down-regulated the mRNA levels of PI3K, Akt, JAK2, and STAT3 in MCF-10A cells treated with E2+P (P<0.01). The results of Western blot showed that the Xihuang Wan-medicated serum inhibited the expression of p-PI3K/PI3K, p-Akt/Akt, p-JAK2/JAK2, and p-STAT3/STAT3 in MCF-10A cells treated with E2+P (P<0.05). ConclusionXihuang Wan may exert the effect against hyperplasia of mammary glands by inhibiting the proliferation and promoting the apoptosis of MCF-10A cells, which may related to the inhibition of the activation of PI3K/Akt and JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathways.
2.PARP1 promotes the progression of hepatocellular carcinoma by regulating expression of POU2F2
Ziqiang WEN ; Junliang LAN ; Bo ZHOU ; Qiwei XU
China Oncology 2024;34(9):848-856
Background and purpose:Hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)is a major disease seriously threatening human health.Poly(ADP-ribose)polymerase-1(PARP1)is an enzyme that catalyzes poly ADP-ribosylation.Given the role of PARP1 in DNA damage repair,it is generally considered as an oncogene.However,the expression of PARP1 and its mechanism in HCC are not yet clear.This study aimed to investigate the role of PARP1 in the occurrence and development of HCC and its potential mechanisms.Methods:First,we analyzed the expression pattern of PARP1 in The Cancer Genome Atlas(TCGA)and Clinical Proteomic Tumor Analysis Consortium(CPTAC)HCC database,and identified the expression trend of PARP1 in our HCC cohort using real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction(RTFQ-PCR)and Western blot.Then,the enzyme activity of PARP1 was inhibited by PJ34,an inhibitor of PARP1 and the expression of PARP1 in HCC cell lines was downregulated with small RNA interference technology.Based on these models,the following experiments were conducted:First,the effect of PARP1 on cell viability was assessed by cell counting kit-8(CCK-8)assay and flow cytometry;Second,the expression levels of stemness-related genes in HCC cells were identified using RTFQ-PCR;Third,the effect of inhibition of PARP1 on migration and invasion of HCC cells was detected by migration and invasion assay(transwell assay).Finally,bioinformatic analysis was performed to identify new target genes and the pathways regulated by PARP1 in HCC progression.Rescue experiments were performed to determine whether PARP1 target genes were involved in the malignant phenotypes of HCC cells.Results:The expression of PARP1 was significantly up-regulated in HCC tissues in both TCGA and CPTAC database.RTFQ-PCR and Western blot assays showed that PARP1 was obviously up-regulated in HCC tissues compared to paracancerous tissues.Survival analysis showed that PARP1 expression was significantly negatively correlated with the prognosis of patients.The results of CCK-8,flow cytometry,RTFQ-PCR and transwell assay indicated that inhibition of PARP1 attenuated proliferation and activity of HCC cells,as well as weakened their stemness,migration and invasion.Bioinformatics analysis suggested that PARP1-regulated genes were enriched in the nuclear factor-κB(NF-κB)and necroptosis pathways,with POU class homeobox 2(POU2F2)potentially being a target gene of PARP1.Correlation analysis,along with RTFQ-PCR and Western blot detection,confirmed that the expression of POU2F2 was regulated by PARP1,while not affected by PJ34,indicating the effect of nonenzymatic function of PARP1 on POU2F2.CCK-8,flow cytometry and RTFQ-PCR results showed that the reintroduction of POU2F2 enhanced proliferative capacity,increased activity,and promoted stemness of HCC cell lines with PARP1 knockdown.Conclusion:By positively regulating the expression of POU2F2,PARP1 promotes malignant phenotypes of HCC cells,providing new insights for clinical treatment and drug development for HCC.
3.Application of carbon nanoparticles suspension in gallbladder carcinoma lymphadenectomy
Junliang LAN ; Qiwei XU ; Xiaoyong DONG
Cancer Research and Clinic 2015;27(3):192-194
Objective To evaluate the clinical value of carbon nanoparticles suspension in gallbladder carcinoma lymphadenectomy.Methods 21 cases of gallbladder carcinoma who received radical resection from January 2008 to August 2013 were randomly divided into experimental group (11 cases received carbon nanoparticles injection into the subserosa around the tumor before operation) and control group (10 cases did not receive any tracer).The number of dissected lymph nodes,black-stained lymph nodes and positive lymph nodes were analyzed.Results A total of 138 lymph nodes were resected in experiment group,average 12.546±5.047 lymph nodes per patient,which was significantly more than that in control group in which there were overall 87 lymph nodes,average 8.700±2.497 lymph nodes per patient (t =2.176,P =0.042).The blacken rate of lymph nodes in experimental group was 56.522 % (78/138).There were 46 metastasis lymph nodes out of 79 blacken lymph nodes,and the positive rate was significantly higher than that of non-blacken lymph nodes [58.228 % (46/79) vs 38.983 % (23/59),P=0.039].There was no local or systemic adverse reaction occurred in experimental group.Conclusions Carbon nanoparticles suspension maybe helpful for lymphadenectomy during radical gallbladder carcinoma dissection to reduce operating damage and be safe.

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